Red Hood: A Tale of Vengeance
by The Wise Sponge
Summary: My name is Jason Todd. I am the Red Hood. And I am bringing justice to Gotham. No matter what it takes.
1. Prologue

Scumbags. Filth. Scum. These are the lowlifes that run this city. But not for long. I am the Red Hood. What my "mentor" never understood was that you can't stop crime. He wanted to rule them by fear, but what did he do with the ones that weren't afraid? I did what he wouldn't, I took them out.

Rain poured down on the dockyard. Lively chatter. Not a bit of fear. Not until they realized that I was here. I planned my next move and crept through the dockyard. One of the thugs decided to take a smoke. Bad idea. I crept up behind him, grabbed his arm, extinguished his cigarette on his face and swiftly snapped his neck. "Worthless ape", I muttered to myself as I tried to think of a reason why it wasn't respectful to say that. "Nope", I whispered, "They don't deserve respect." I continued my relentless but stealthy assault, taking pride in my work. With every movement, I ensured that no momentum was wasted and that mercy was irrelevant. Only one scumbag remained. "I think I'll give him a grand farewell," I said quietly, "Heaven help him, because I won't." I walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder and as expected, he made the mistake of trying to attack me. I broke his wrist and threw him onto the cold, hard floor.

" _I need some information," I said in a mostly calm voice, "Where's Black Mask?"_

" _I ain't tellin' you jack!" he said without fear, "Besides, you won't kill me!"_

He obviously forgot who I was. He obviously had me mistaken for Batman. A rookie mistake.

" _Do I look like Batman to you?" I replied._

" _Well yeah, kind of." He said confidently, "You've got that insignia thing on your chest."_

He had a point. But he did remind me that I wasn't Batman and that this type of interrogation was a bit old-fashioned. So I did what only I would do. I took out my gun and slammed the barrel to his head.

" _I'll ask you one more time," I bellowed, "Where is he?!"_

" _Ok, ok!" He shouted, "He's working out of a penthouse in Chinatown!"_

" _Appreciate it." I reassuringly said._ And then I pulled the trigger.

Don't judge me for what I do. I do what no one else will do, I rid this city of crime. In a way that only killing can. Throw a criminal into jail and what happens? They get out. Either by bail or by serving their time. They get back out so they can do it again. I remember I said to another vigilante who refused to kill once: Murder? Let me ask you something when you kill a rabid animal, is that murder? Makes sense doesn't it? I'm taking this city back. One body at a time.


	2. Chapter 1

The neon-lit signs lit up this part of Gotham with an eerie, colorful glow. The streets were resonating with lively conversations and enjoyment. I spotted some of Black Mask's henchmen in an alley, and I knew things were about to get serious. I stayed in the shadows and made my way through the rooftops. A lone gunman supposedly guarding the complex from above failed to notice my shadow until the last minute, by then it was too late.

I continued my justice-fueled onslaught. Distracting them. Separating them. Killing them. Heh. One of them tried to catch me off-guard. Let's just say, he didn't live to tell the tale. I kicked down the door to Black Mask's office. There he was, cowering in fear. He tried to quickly draw his gun, but I'm afraid he wasn't fast enough as I shot off three of his fingers, which conveniently made him drop his gun. I dragged him all the way to the street, hearing him curse silently and gasp in horror as he saw my work before him. Every man who worked for him, dead. Their blood-stained corpses leading all the way out.

" _How do you like that, Sionis?" I mockingly jeered, "All your men, at your feet. Literally."_

He remained silent through the endeavor, his conscience scarred forever. The great Black Mask was finally quiet. Funny that all it took was watching those close to him die. But now I had another problem. Batman. There he stood, waiting for me. His emotionless face somehow showing disappointment. I slowly approached him, with Black Mask in hand.

" _What do you want, Batman?" I asked already knowing the answer, "Come to help me finish him off?"_

" _He deserves justice." Batman predictably replied, "He must ans-"_

" _He IS answering for his crimes!" I said to Gotham's Knight, "There's only one place he goes tonight."_

" _Where?"_

" _Hell."_

The Dark Knight wasn't too pleased with my judgement, but he knew better than to mess with the Red Hood. And so, it was just me and him. Red Hood and Black Mask. Just like everyone else who fears death, he tried to bargain for it. He tried to buy me. The thing is, I've been dead. And life isn't so special the next time around. The only thing I know now, is that I'm going to enjoy this. Black Mask doesn't do business here anymore.


End file.
